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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23332174">Shot At The Night</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/peace_wisepenguin/pseuds/peace_wisepenguin'>peace_wisepenguin</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Black Family Drama (Harry Potter), Brotherly Bonding, Explicit Sexual Content, Family, Infidelity, M/M, Manipulation, Minor Sirius Black/Remus Lupin, Moral Ambiguity, POV Regulus Black, minor Regulus Black/Rodolphus LeStrange</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 06:20:51</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>14,981</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23332174</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/peace_wisepenguin/pseuds/peace_wisepenguin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Regulus Black sees Peter Pettigrew at a Death Eater meeting and decides to tell Sirius.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Regulus Black &amp; Remus Lupin, Regulus Black &amp; Sirius Black, Regulus Black/Rodolphus Lestrange, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>163</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Regulus Black Fest 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Shot At The Night</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This has truly been a roller coaster. Thank you to my beta Wynne for helping me through all of this and being so kind, I will always remember you!!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Regulus fest<br/>
No. 41<br/>
Pairing:<br/>
Prompt: Regulus saw Peter Pettigrew in one of their meetings but he would also see him still being friends with that his brother. So he decided to tell / warn Sirius about Pettigrew.<br/>
By: Ladybirdsparrow @tumblr and Ladybird_Sparrow in Ao3</p><p>****<br/>
Sitting on his king-sized bed with green silk sheets strewn over his legs, Regulus Black leans harder into his pillow as he rereads the letter in his hand.  It is from his brother. It is one of the last communications the two men had; he sent the letter when Regulus became a Death Eater.</p><p>“You and I have chosen different paths, dear brother, and although we have chosen different sides of this war, and I hate your smug Slytherin attitude, I will always remember when I convinced you that a Caipora lived under your bed. I’d sneak into your room at night and move things around, and you asked me to stay up with you all night so that we could catch it together. Or when you performed magic successfully for the first time, the look on your face was magic in and of itself. I will always love you, little brother, and if you ever need anything, just ask.<br/>
–Your more powerful and much more handsome brother, Sirius”</p><p>Regulus reads the letter over and over. It’s almost two years old at this point. He secretly misses Sirius so much. From the time Sirius started at Hogwarts, the relationship between the two boys was strained. Their mother, Walburga was always severely disappointed in Sirius, and Regulus felt the need to comply with his mother's wishes. He always wanted to please his mother, so much so, that it would take him away from the things that he loved, including his brother. He always kept tabs on Sirius though, at Hogwarts and after they both set out for the real world. As he grasps the letter in his hand, he tries to picture what his life would be like if he sided with his idiot brother instead of his disgruntled mother. He has been wondering for months now if he took the right path, if anyone truly knew what they were really fighting for. The more involved he gets in this war, the more he sees people fighting for the wrong reasons. He isn’t even sure why he joined, other than to please his mother.</p><p>Walburga opens the door to his room. “Why are you not ready? We will be leaving soon and if you are not downstairs in 2 minutes, your father and I will leave without you.” She slams the door and heads downstairs. </p><p>‘Why am I not ready?’ he thinks to himself. ‘I’m the Death Eater in this family. They couldn’t go to most of these meetings without me.’<br/>
His parents have always supported Voldemort but never enough to officially join the cause. He thought once he had become a Death Eater they would respect him more, treat him like an equal, or at least an adult. His parents always treated him like a child though, even at the ages that they started giving Sirius more responsibility, Regulus would get looked over for the most mundane of tasks because he was “too young.” He’d been fighting his whole life to be on his parents’ radar and even now they treat him like a stubborn child.</p><p>Regulus just throws his robes on and walks downstairs, hiding the letter in a secret compartment Sirius helped him create many years ago. </p><p>They go through the fireplace and end up in Malfoy Manor. Walburga and Narcissa hug softly.</p><p>“So, dear niece, are you pregnant yet?”</p><p>“Not yet, but it will happen soon. I just know it.” </p><p>“You’ve been trying for so long now.”</p><p>Regulus is not very interested in this conversation; he places his hand on his mother’s shoulder and tilts his head toward the table in the middle of the room. She nods, excusing him from the tedious conversation.  Orion greets Lucius and sits at the table; it already seems like everyone has arrived. Regulus sits next to his father without speaking to anyone. He listens to Evan Rosier talk about how he had just killed a whole muggle family with Avery. Regulus is starting to feel like all of these meetings are the same, ‘who’s having a baby to continue our pureblood society, or which impure blood did you kill this week.’ He’s getting rather sick of it. No one seems to truly be trying to make their society better, but maybe ridding the world of filthy mudbloods is the way to start. What does he know?<br/>
The meeting begins and as he looks upon his parents, Regulus starts to feel like he is right. He usually is. Half of the people here are only serving because they like to torture people and the other half are here out of fear. The first thirty minutes of the meeting, they discuss how many people they have killed and how they can kill more. ‘These people are mostly innocent muggles who have no bearing in the magical world, so why are we killing them? Shouldn’t we be killing Order members?’ Regulus has been having more of these thoughts recently. The other Death Eaters have a nice laugh about how much more powerful they are and how easily this war will be won, but Regulus feels that this is not true, he has seen the underdog come from behind and win one too many times. It is not smart to underestimate your opponent. </p><p>‘This is no real cause we’re fighting for,’ he thinks. </p><p>As he looks around the room and Voldemort is giving instructions to different people, he sees someone hiding in the corner; he saw the man come in alongside Bellatrix but didn’t see who it was. Now that he looks closer, he realizes, no it can’t be, Peter Pettigrew? He catches Pettigrew’s eye for a moment and Pettigrew gives him a nod before looking down.</p><p>After the meeting is finished, he goes up to Pettigrew. “You must have done something truly impressive to convince them you are on our side.” </p><p>Peter looks frightened. “Yes.” </p><p>Regulus looks at him with a bit of contempt. “Does my brother know you’ve SWITCHED SIDES or are you a rat?” </p><p>“Sirius does not know, no one does.” </p><p>“And what, pray tell, persuaded you to become a Death Eater spy?” </p><p>“It’s the only way. The Order is a mess and people are dying every day. It’s only a matter of time before…” </p><p>“Ohhh a Gryffindor coward, I see. How difficult it must be for you, acting so loyal to your friends when you’ve abandoned them, betrayed them.” </p><p>“I didn’t!!” Peter cries out. Everyone looks over and then continues doing what they were doing. Peter continues, saying, “I only mean that I did what I had to, to survive. Isn’t that what you’re doing?” </p><p>“Excuse me?” </p><p>“You don’t believe in this cause. I’ve seen you too many times, Reg, helping others in need. I know what you did at Hogwarts.”</p><p>“I do believe in this cause and if you ever suggest otherwise, I will kill you.” Regulus struts away as Pettigrew leans against the wall, almost out of breath.</p><p>Walburga interrupts her son’s strut and puts a hand on his shoulder. “It is time to go, son.” </p><p>Probably a good thing, because he truly does feel like murdering Pettigrew. He never really like the boy. Pettigrew always seemed to be more interested in James Potter than Sirius or Remus. Regulus has always had a good feeling about people. His pureblood instincts have never let him down. ‘Are they due to being a pureblood?’ Sometimes he feels that he is having more thoughts like this as of late.<br/>
He nods and they floo back to Grimmauld Place; Orion goes straight to his study. Kreacher has warm cups of tea waiting for them when they arrive. </p><p>“Your tea, mistress.” He hands a cup to Walburga and she takes it and walks over to the sitting room to enjoy it. “Master Regulus, your tea.” </p><p>Regulus whispers back, “Thank you, Kreacher. I will be needing parchment and ink in my room as well as an owl to send a letter before bed.” </p><p>Regulus has already decided to send a letter to his brother, although he’s not quite sure what to say. Sirius has always loved Regulus but never quite trusted him after he became a Death Eater. If he told Sirius about his traitor of a friend, would he even believe him, or think it is some kind of trick? Regulus is going to need some proof, or maybe just some help convincing his older brother.<br/>
Kreacher bows, “Of course, Master Regulus. I will bring it with your fresh bedclothes.”</p><p>Regulus thinks about how to tell Sirius that his friend is a traitor, but he knows his brother too well. He finally decides on the right way to go about it.<br/>
****<br/>
Remus is lying in his bed reading a book on defensive magic against dark spells, with the sound of the shower in the background. He sips a cup of tea. He hears a tapping sound and assumes it is Sirius dropping things in the shower but then looks up to see an owl at the window of his bedroom. He puts the book down, grabs a bowl from his bedside table, and fills it with water. When he opens the window, he realizes that he recognizes the owl and sees the letter is from Regulus and is addressed to himself, not Sirius. </p><p>“Lupin, I have something to discuss with my brother. I haven’t spoken to him in almost a year, as I assume you know. I must urge that this meeting be known only by you. Do not tell anyone, especially P.P. I will come to your flat by the floo network three days hence. Expect me around midday and make sure Sirius is not in a combative mood.<br/>
-R.A.B.”<br/>
Remus grabs a quill and some ink. As he begins to write his response under Regulus’ initials, he pauses, and thinks, ‘What if this is a trap? Reg wouldn’t. Would he? Why P.P.? Peter maybe?’ He and Regulus have had an interesting relationship since Regulus started at Hogwarts. One thing he always remembers is when Regulus came to him in Remus’ fifth year and told him that he knew he was a werewolf. Remus was so scared, especially since he had also mentioned certain Slytherins who were skeptical of Remus and his ‘condition.’ Remus remembered Regulus’ exact words: “No one has it all figured out yet but they are suspicious, you need to be more careful Lupin!” </p><p>Remus thought he was about to be blackmailed or may even have to leave school all together but Regulus told him that he would try to steer them to other possibilities as long as he could with only one condition: don’t tell Sirius.</p><p>He grabs another piece of parchment, puts the quill to it, and writes, ‘You are always welcome here. R.J.L.’</p><p>The shower turns off right when Remus closes the window. He goes back to the bed and continues his reading. Sirius steps out of the bathroom in his pants and jumps in bed.</p><p>“Why is it so cool in here? Did you have the window open?” </p><p>“I did. We just had an owl, a Black owl.” </p><p>“What does that matter?” </p><p>“No Sirius not a black owl, a Black FAMILY owl.”</p><p>Sirius’ face flushes. “Where is the letter? Did you open it? Did you read it? What did it say? What could they possibly…?”</p><p>“Sirius, stop! The letter was addressed to me. From Reg.” </p><p>“To you? Are they threatening you? If they’re trying to blackmail you, I will fucking…” </p><p>“Why don’t you sit still and I’ll talk.” </p><p>Sirius sits and crosses his arms and legs like a pouting toddler.</p><p>“Regulus is going to come here for a chat in three days around midday. He also mentioned that…” </p><p>“He is not coming here. No! HE IS NOT WELCOME!! He is a hypocrite and a liar and cheeky little bastard, and I will not allow him in our home!!!” </p><p>“Well that could be a problem, since I already replied and told him he could come.” </p><p>“REMUS!!” </p><p>“I think you should read the letter and then decide how you feel.” Remus hands Sirius the letter to read.</p><p>As he reads it, Sirius scoffs, “Three days hence, what a prat!” </p><p>“Is that really the part you’re focusing on?” </p><p>“Of course not… P.P.? He couldn’t mean Peter.” </p><p>“I think he does, and I am very curious as to why, aren’t you?” </p><p>Sirius looks up at Remus. “We should be prudent. This could be a trap or a trick.” </p><p>“Yes, or he could be about to give us the information we’ve been desperately searching for.” </p><p>“You think Wormtail is the spy? He can’t be.” </p><p>“Why not?” </p><p>“Because he’s… Wormtail.” Sirius’ speech starts to trail off as his eyes search the room and he starts to become more suspicious. </p><p>“What’s on your mind, Sirius?”</p><p>“Remember the time we were discussing Alice’s encounter with that Death Eater last month? We came up with a plan to lure them into a trap and before we got there, the Death Eaters had already set up a trap of their own.” </p><p>“Yes, we almost lost Frank that day.” </p><p>“Do you remember that meeting though, where we’d planned it all?” </p><p>Remus nods his head. He’s starting to feel like everything he has known may come crashing down around him. Remus isn’t quite ready for that yet.</p><p>Sirius continues. “You said you thought you smelled Wormtail, like he was there, but he wasn’t at that meeting.” </p><p>“Yes, but he had been at Andie’s house earlier that day. I was just smelling remnants of him.” </p><p>“No, you were sure in the moment that he was there. What if he was, Remus? What if he was there, as Wormtail, listening?” </p><p>“We shouldn’t jump to conclusions. Let’s just wait until Reg comes and then we’ll take whatever he gives and discern it from there.”</p><p>****</p><p>The next day, Regulus invites Severus Snape to have lunch at his home. When Severus arrives, he is in awe of the grandness that Regulus is so used to.</p><p>“Please sit. Kreacher will be right out with the food.”</p><p>“Thank you, Regulus, but why have you invited me here?”</p><p>“I thought you may be the perfect person to speak to about my concerns. It is about Peter Pettigrew.”<br/>
Severus’ face distorts a little at the sound of his name. “What about him?”</p><p>“He is a part of our meetings now? How can that be? He is a Gryffindor and friends with my blood traitor of a brother. How is it that he is trusted so dearly?”</p><p>“It is not for me to say who the Dark Lord trusts and why.”</p><p>“Oh please, Severus! I am sure you brought your concerns to the Dark Lord. Pettigrew no less than tortured you in school.”</p><p>“He did no such thing… Those stupid, arrogant boys could never have left a mark on me.”</p><p>“So, you failed to warn the Dark Lord of his lack of credibility?”</p><p>“I did not say that.”</p><p>“Then…?”</p><p>“Pettigrew killed an Order member, someone who has been giving us quite a lot of problems lately. He showed up on Lucius’ doorstep with Dearborn’s body.”</p><p>Regulus is taken aback by this information. He remembers his brother and his friends being friendly with Dearborn in school. He was sure there had to be a good reason for Voldemort to trust Pettigrew and there was.</p><p>“How do we know Dearborn wasn’t killed by one of us and Pettigrew took the opportunity to infiltrate us?”</p><p>“Dearborn was only stunned when Pettigrew brought him. Lucius saw Pettigrew kill him himself.”</p><p>Kreacher finally shows up with the food. The two men eat in near silence before Severus asks, “Was that all you wanted to know?”</p><p>“Yes. I am only concerned with the safety of the Dark Lord.”</p><p>“Yes. I believe we all are.” Severus nods his head and disapparates.</p><p>****</p><p>After gathering all the information that he believes he’ll need to convince his brother, Regulus decides it’s time for their meeting. After flooing into Sirius and Remus’ flat for the first time, he looks around at the tiny room. There is only a couch facing some kind of box with glass in it and two wires sticking out the top of it. Nothing matches and there isn’t much decoration anywhere, other than some red and gold flags and a picture of the Marauders, maybe from their fifth year.</p><p>“Welcome!” Remus tries to keep everything happy and positive. He stands in between Regulus and Sirius, who is standing against the wall near the kitchen with his arms crossed and a foot on the wall. Remus has been in the middle of the two brothers before and thinks of himself as a fairly good mediator.</p><p>Regulus just stares at him. </p><p>“What is it that you want?” Sirius is trying to get to the point.</p><p>“Your home is very… quaint.”</p><p>“If you’ve come to insult our home then please get the fuck out.”</p><p>“Please brother, there is no need to get hostile. I believe you should sit down.”</p><p>Remus and Sirius exchange looks and sit down at the dinner table, which, just like everything in the room, is very small. </p><p>“I believe that your friend Peter Pettigrew has turned and is now a Death Eater spy. He has the dark mark and has been at several meetings now. I wanted to inform you so that you could take appropriate actions towards him.”</p><p>“How do you know he isn’t a spy for us?” </p><p>“One of your members has gone missing recently, Caradoc Dearborn.” </p><p>“How is it exactly that you know that?” </p><p>“Because Pettigrew showed up at Malfoy Manor a fortnight ago with his body.” </p><p>Remus and Sirius are shocked. Both men cannot comprehend what they’ve just heard. They both are lost in their own thoughts. </p><p>Regulus knew this was going to be a huge shock to them. Although it was a shock to Regulus at first, of course this happened. No more than one person should ever be trusted, he’s learned this the hard way. </p><p>Regulus is pacing as he becomes impatient. “This is no time for reflection and passivity. This is a time for action.” He’s frustrated with this whole situation. He has come here and risked himself for his brother and what he got in return was a lack of a reaction. They should have been able to figure this out from his letter alone. He keeps looking at Sirius, trying to get a reaction out of him.</p><p>Sirius looks like he’s about to burst so Remus excuses them both and they walk into the kitchen, which is not necessarily a separate room. Regulus nods and wipes his finger on the sofa before reluctantly sitting down. </p><p>“Why should we believe anything he says? He could be trying to drive a wedge between Order members.” </p><p>“I don’t think so. Why now? And why Peter? Of all of us, he’s the least suspicious. Why not try to drive a wedge between the two of us?<br/>
That would be much more effective.” </p><p>“Perhaps, but Regulus is smart. He may have thought we were too close to drive a wedge between, and Peter, he’s been so devoted to the Order lately, so…” Sirius stops speaking suddenly.</p><p>“What is it?” </p><p>Sirius walks back into the living room and Remus follows. “Why would you come here? Why would you give us this information? Regulus Black, so devoted to the ‘Dark Lord,’ I remember how badly you wanted to join him, fight for him. Why would you betray him in this way?!” </p><p>“Because, dear brother, I was wrong. I thought this was a cause I could fight for, a cause I could believe in and set things right, rid this world of muggle-borns and half-bloods and dark creatures, create a pure magical world that isn’t stained with the likes of werewolves and goblins, lesser creatures than us.” Sirius starts to make a fist and Remus can see that a fight is about to break out. He knows firsthand how a Black’s temper can boil over in a second; in a flash he’s in between the brothers with his hands up, forcing both men to back up. “Oh don’t worry, I’m well aware of Lupins’ ‘condition.’” When Sirius starts to move Remus out of the way so he can strangle his brother, Regulus puts his hands up and adds, “I have known for some time and I haven’t told anyone, and I will continue to keep that information to myself.”</p><p>“If we work with you?” </p><p>“No. I am not Mother. I needn’t blackmail people to get what I want.” Regulus smirks. </p><p>“So, what is it then? You’ve changed your views on blood supremacy?” Remus is trying to stay calm, but even his words drip with disdain. </p><p>“No, my views on society have not changed. It is my views on this movement that have changed. I’ve come to learn most Death Eaters have only joined the Dark Lord out of fear or violence. No one is interested in creating a better society. Everyone is only interested in, well, death and torture or not being killed or tortured themselves.” </p><p>Sirius scoffs. “Oh so what you’re saying is that your Death Eaters didn’t live up to your expectations, so you’ve decided to jump ship and join the other side? What, out of spite?!” </p><p>“Something like that, yes.”</p><p>“And if we don’t believe you?” </p><p>“I lose nothing. You, however, will continue to put your friends in danger.”</p><p>Sirius takes a step back, contemplating what his brother has just told him. Remus decides to go into the bedroom. He comes back out, the two brothers haven’t moved, Remus hands him a Gryffindor pendant. </p><p>“You’ll need to give us some time. Take this and keep it on you always.”</p><p>Regulus examines the pendant with scrutiny. “Why?”</p><p>“We can get in touch with you easily. You’ll see.”</p><p>Regulus puts the pendant in his pocket and gives his Sirius one last look. “I hope you think about this logically, brother. Keep your feelings free of your decision.” He turns and enters the fireplace.</p><p>He goes back to Grimmauld Place to change. He’s got a meeting with his cousin Bellatrix and he looks a little too casual. He puts on a straight black tie over his dark green collared shirt and black trousers, then throws his robes on and apparates to Knockturn Alley. </p><p>He’s meeting her at Borgin and Burkes to discuss different objects that the Dark Lord is looking for, or so he thinks. He walks inside and Bella is there with her husband Rodolphus, whom Regulus has had many trysts with. He looks him up and down. They are discussing some kind of cup and the best place for it to be hidden. He waits for them to finish.</p><p>“Good, you are early, as usual,” Bella states. “We have a small mission for you.” </p><p>“And what might that entail?” </p><p>“You will have to contact your brother,” Bella says, which makes Regulus start to get a bit nervous, but they couldn’t know what he’d just done. “Tell him you want to meet.” </p><p>“Why, may I ask, do I need to meet with a blood traitor like him?” </p><p>“The Dark Lord needs information. I have somewhere to be but Rodolphus can give you the information.” Bellatrix disapparates and he is left alone with Rodolphus. This is much better; he knows exactly how to manipulate him. </p><p>“If she is not to return, we should leave,” Regulus says in a low, husky voice. “We can discuss this somewhere more private if you’d like?” He gives Rodolphus a racy smirk.</p><p>“Yes, I believe that would be best,” Rodolphus replies eagerly. “Grimmauld Place should be more private. We have guests staying at our manor.” Regulus grabs the other man’s hand and they disapparate back to Grimmauld Place.</p><p>Rodolphus starts to grab at Regulus’ robes as soon as they land in his room. Regulus almost forgets what his main objective is. He gives in and lets Rodolphus unbutton his shirt while applying a tender kiss to his neck. This is not the first time the two have stolen away together. Regulus is usually only interested in the fun of it but Rodolphus has also started showing more of a romantic interest lately. Regulus has never felt romantically inclined towards anyone, but he does use other people's weaknesses to his advantage.</p><p>“Wait, let us discuss this matter first and then I am yours to do with as you wish,” Regulus says.</p><p>“Why can’t we talk later?” Rodolphus says as he kisses Regulus’ neck some more. </p><p>“Because we do not know what will happen between now and later.” Regulus switches to a more caring and concerned demeanor, placing his hand on the other man’s face. “I do not know what I would do if something happened to you. If the Dark Lord’s needs were not met; if I do not get your message.” Regulus has been manipulating Rodolphus for some time now, usually to get information. At first it was hard to get the other man to admit the Dark Lord’s plans but now he knows exactly how to play him.</p><p>Rodolphus sighs and sits down on an ottoman. “The Dark Lord wants you to get information on Dumbledore from your brother. He believes that Dumbledore may know a secret of his and he needs to know more.”</p><p>“Are you going to tell me this secret or am I to just ask Sirius a heap of random questions until I hit the mark? The mark of which I do not know.” </p><p>Rodolphus looks from side to side, seeming to debate in his mind whether to tell the young Black. Regulus can see there is something else, he knows exactly what the Dark Lord is afraid of and if he can just get him to admit it, then maybe he can use it to his advantage somehow. He’s starting to see the appeal of playing both sides.</p><p>Regulus walks over to him and places a hand on his shoulder. “You know I am loyal to the Dark Lord. Just tell me, so I shall be successful in my mission and both of us will be praised by the Dark Lord…” Rodolphus is still only moving his gaze around the room, so Regulus moves his hand from his shoulder to his inner thigh and whispers in his ear, “Tell me so we can move to the bed and have the night of our lives.”</p><p>Rodolphus finally gives in. “It’s about an item, that’s all I know. An item that the Dark Lord is very protective of, I am not sure why, but he believes Dumbledore is searching for it.” </p><p>“And that is all that you know?” </p><p>“Yes.” </p><p>“Then come with me.” Regulus moves his hand from Rodolphus’ inner thigh to the other man’s hand and pulls him up to his feet to move him toward the bed. </p><p>Regulus pulls him into a very passionate kiss and runs his hands through Rodolphus’ long straight black hair. Rodolphus starts to remove his robes and kisses Regulus’ neck again. He moans which makes Rodolphus even more eager to get their clothes off. Regulus continues to help them undress. He places his hand on the other man’s buttocks and picks Rodolphus up. They kiss enthusiastically and then he throws him roughly onto the bed. He lays there waiting for Regulus to climb on top of him; Regulus knows exactly what he wants. He climbs up slowly, placing kisses up the other man’s thigh as he gets closer to his hard cock. </p><p>Regulus enjoys this part the most. The lead up. The anticipation is just starting to rise. Having another human being at his command, knowing that he could make Rodolphus do anything he wanted in this moment, that was what really turned Regulus on. He started to tease Rodolphus by moving his hands from his buttocks to his waist, licking around his thighs, and creating a sensation in Rodolphus that, as he writhes underneath, makes Regulus feel like he is on top of the world.</p><p>Rodolphus moans in anticipation, but Regulus knows how to work him. He starts to suck on the skin around the base of his erection and wraps his hand around the other man’s shaft. As he works his hand up and down, turning at just the right spots Rodolphus screams in pleasure. Regulus removes his hand and replaces it with his mouth. As he moves his mouth up and down and uses his tongue to tease the slit at the tip of his cock, Rodolphus is about to cum, so he hums just a bit and Rodolphus explodes into Regulus’ mouth. </p><p>Regulus revels in the feeling of triumph. He adores knowing how good he is at pleasing someone else. After hearing the moans of pleasure from the other man’s lips and feeling his body writhing beneath him just from the simple heat of his mouth and dancing of his tongue, Regulus is ready for his own release.</p><p>Regulus looks up at him with cum dripping from his lips, as he wipes his tongue across his bottom lip and says, “My turn.” He flips Rodolphus over and slaps his rear. He feels so powerful in this position, and knowing that at any moment he could do anything to Rodolphus, even kill him if it pleased him, made it even more erotic for Regulus.</p><p>Rodolphus grunts, “Harder.” </p><p>Regulus smacks him harder and starts to tease his hole, rubbing his fingers over it to stimulate the area and prep him. He mutters a spell softly and then grabs Rodolphus’ hair and brings his head closer to him to whisper, “What do you want?” </p><p>“Fuck me,” the other man begs. He loves to hear him beg for it. It makes him harder but he wants more. He wants a desperate plea.</p><p>“I didn’t hear you.” Regulus smacks his arse again. </p><p>“Fuck me! Please. Please fuck me, Regulus!!” This is what he is waiting for. Rodolphus sounds desperate for Regulus’ cock to be inside of him. He just wants him to suffer a little bit more.</p><p>Regulus spreads Rodolphus’ cheeks and rubs the tip of his cock against his hole. “Is this what you want?” </p><p>“Ohhh Regulus!! Please, I want…” Rodolphus already sounds out of breath. “I need you inside of me.” </p><p>And with that Regulus whispers something and shoves himself inside the other man and fucks him hard. Rodolphus moans with pleasure and Regulus grips his hips so hard he knows it will leave his mark. </p><p>“Harder!!” Rodolphus begs, his voice shuddering. </p><p>Regulus slides in and out, trying to enjoy this rare moment. He listens to Rodolphus grunt and moan and tries to keep it in his memory for later. He closes his eyes as he slams into Rodolphus. He hears the squeak of his bed and the clapping of skin on skin and he knows that he is in control of every detail.</p><p>Regulus cums hard and pulls out. He lays down next to Rodolphus and moves the hair from his face. This is the part he loathes: the tenderness after. What is tenderness after all, other than another weakness. “Was there anything else you needed to tell me?” </p><p>“No.”</p><p>Regulus gives him a soft kiss and looks him in the eye. “Then I think you should go.” </p><p>“But…” </p><p>“You cannot stay, as much as we may want it.” Rodolphus is such a sap. He craves attention and acceptance far too often, it is too easy to get him to fall to Regulus’ will.</p><p>Rodolphus nods his head and puts his clothes back on. He goes to give Regulus a goodbye kiss and Regulus turns to offer him his cheek. He disapparates and Regulus puts a bathrobe on, ignoring his clothes in a heap on the floor, and heads for the shower.</p><p>****</p><p>The next day Regulus wakes up to a buzzing sound on his dresser. His trousers are sitting there, folded, and right next to them is the Gryffindor pendant. Once he picks it up the back starts to heat up and he turns it over; letters start to appear. They read ‘snow peas 2pm.’ Regulus knows exactly what this means. The Black family has a summer house in France; they went for the holidays one year and Regulus made tiny snowballs. He decided to call them snow peas when Sirius said they were too small to be snowballs. The memory makes Regulus smile. He puts the pendant down and dresses. </p><p>He goes downstairs and enters the dining room. It seems his father has already eaten and left, and his mother is sitting with a cup of tea and toast. There is already a cup of tea waiting for him, and as soon as he sits down Kreacher walks up and hands him his toast, already buttered. “Thank you, Kreacher.” He nods his head to the house elf and Kreacher nods his head after giving him a knowing look. Regulus knows that Kreacher was the one to take the Gryffindor pendant out of his pants and place it on the dresser. </p><p>“You shouldn’t do that.” </p><p>“Do what, Mother?” </p><p>“Thank them. They enjoy working for us. It is them that should be thankful, for we let them serve us.” </p><p>“Of course, I will not do it again.” ‘In front of you,’ he thinks. </p><p>Walburga smiles in delight. “Good. Now we have a matter to discuss. I’d like for you to meet Aurora for lunch today. I think the two of you will make an excellent match.” </p><p>“I will be gone most of the day.” </p><p>“Doing what? You do not have a job and this is important. You are now the heir to this great family and you must continue our heritage.” </p><p>“I have been given a task by the Dark Lord; I believe our heritage can wait.” </p><p>Walburga sits up, losing her breath for a second. “Oh, well then, I shall reschedule your plans.” </p><p>This is not the first time his mother has tried to talk with him about an arranged marriage. He knows it is inevitable and at some point he will have to find a wife to bear his children but he was hoping to put it off as long as possible.</p><p>Regulus nods as he takes another bite of his toast. They continue to sit there in silence. The only noise for the next 15 minutes comes from Kreacher, always there to refill their tea or clean up spilt crumbs.</p><p>Regulus waits for his mother to leave the table first and then finds Kreacher in the kitchen. “Kreacher, I know that you saw the pendant. Have you told anyone?” </p><p>“No, Master Regulus. Kreacher would never betray his master. Never.” </p><p>“It’s a way for me to contact someone.” </p><p>“’Tis none of my business, master, none of my business indeed.” </p><p>“I just want you to know Kreacher, that I have not betrayed anyone.” </p><p>“Kreacher would never think such things. Kreacher knows his master is true and loyal.” </p><p>“Thank you, Kreacher.” </p><p>“My Mistress would not have you saying such things.” </p><p>“I don’t care what she wants. I will always treat you with respect. You deserve that much.”<br/>
Kreacher smiles. “Oh thank you, Master Regulus. You are a kind wizard. Kreacher could not dream of a better master. Kreacher is thankful.” </p><p>There was always a special bond between the two. Kreacher did no less than raise the boy from when he was a baby. Regulus’ father was always working and his mother was always trying to train Sirius to become the patriarch of the Black family. Regulus was then indebted to Kreacher to feed and teach him the most basic of skills. Kreacher is the only being that has always been loyal to Regulus, the only one who he feels has had his best interests in mind.</p><p>They nod at each other. </p><p>“I will be gone. I know not for how long. I will be back before dinner.” Regulus disapparates away.</p><p>****</p><p>Regulus is walking through the Black family summer home in France. The family hasn’t been here in years. It’s dark and dusty. There are pictures of Sirius and Regulus as boys, laughing and hugging each other. One reminds him of the snow peas. It shows Sirius, alone as a boy, smiling as Regulus bursts into the photograph and throws snow in his big brother’s face. </p><p>These were the times that he likes to remember, the times before Hogwarts separated them or the different sides of a war that seemingly will never be won. Why can’t things be as simple as throwing snow in his brother’s face?</p><p>He hears a clanking sound behind him. He draws his wand and turns around. He’s pointing it at a big black dog. Relief flows through his whole body. “You are not sneaking up on anyone with those claws, I’ll have you know.” </p><p>“You should see mine.” </p><p>Regulus jumps as he sees Remus, with a smirk on his face, coming from the kitchen. He looks a little more disheveled than usual. </p><p>“Now you snuck up on me.” </p><p>“He’s good at things like that.” Suddenly Sirius is sitting on the floor where the black dog once was. </p><p>Regulus, with a whisper of surprise, says, “You’re an Animagus?” </p><p>“Yes, I learned to help Remus with his… furry little problem.” </p><p>Remus rolls his eyes. “Aren’t we getting a little old to be referring to it as a Furry Little…” </p><p>“No, I don’t think so.” He turns to Regulus looking very perturbed. “Regulus, you are early.” </p><p>“Better to be early than on time.”</p><p>“Well we weren’t expecting you THIS early and you interrupted my…” </p><p>“SIRIUS!” Remus interrupts Sirius from saying too much about their kitchen escapades. He knows how much Sirius likes to throw his brother off hilt but this is not the time.</p><p>Sirius stops talking and glowers at Remus for interrupting his pout. They have a stare off and Remus wins. “Fine. Regulus, we need to set some ground rules if we will be working together.” </p><p>“I agree,” Regulus responds. “I need information from you to take back to Bella.” </p><p>“What? What kind of information?” </p><p> </p><p>“I need to know if Dumbledore is looking for an item of Voldemort’s.” </p><p>“What item?” </p><p>“I do not know.” </p><p>“Well how are we supposed to find out, if we don’t know what it is?” </p><p>“All I know is that it’s very important. Perhaps a dark object, but I cannot be sure.” </p><p>“Not that we know of. Remus do you know?”</p><p>Remus continues his silence, shrugging and shaking his head. Regulus stares at him suspiciously for a second, evaluating his posture and his eyes. Remus Lupin is one of the best liars Regulus has ever met, but he knows when someone is lying, always. Remus just stares back at him. </p><p>“This pendant, tell me the spell you used so that I can contact you as well.” </p><p>Sirius stands up and walks over to Regulus. He grabs the pendant, tossing it in the air and catching it. “You have to focus on one of us and think about your message, then give it a kiss. It will transfer to one of our pendants or both.” </p><p>“Each of you have separate pendants?” </p><p>“Yes.” </p><p>“So I can send a message to you without Remus reading it?” </p><p>“Yes, but I will share everything with him anyway.” </p><p>“What if I only want you to read it?” </p><p>“Think YEO,” Remus says after a pause. Both Black brothers look at him. “Your Eyes Only.” Sirius is looking at him skeptically, and Remus adds, “If Regulus wants you to know something and not me, I shall respect that.” Remus has a feeling that isn’t what Regulus intends.</p><p>It’s Remus’ tone that makes Regulus understand. </p><p>‘He doesn’t mean what he says. He knows exactly why I was asking those questions; Remus knows that I can tell he’s lying. People who often wear masks in public can usually spot others who do the same,’ Regulus thinks to himself.</p><p>“Alright, ground rules.” Sirius tries to get back on track. “One. This is between the three of us. No one else can know.” Regulus nods. </p><p>“Two. We don’t give anyone up. If you’re caught, it’s just you, similarly, Remus or I will not give you up if we are to be caught.” Regulus nods. “Three. Complete honesty. No lies. No manipulation.” </p><p>“Are all of these rules to protect yourselves against me?” </p><p>“No. But if you’d like to add something, you are more than welcome.” </p><p>“You must trust me. I am adhering to all of your rules, so my only rule is that you know I am on your side now. No questioning me or my motives or anything I say.”</p><p>“Fine,” Remus says. “But all of these rules go both ways.”</p><p>“Fine.”</p><p>They go over a few other rules and talk about how they will all end up arguing at some point so they should refrain from taking anything too far; with that, Remus disappears into the kitchen to make lunch and leave the brothers to their own devices.</p><p>“I know you don’t believe that my heart is in this, but it is. This life, being a Death Eater, it isn’t at all what I thought it would be.”</p><p>“I hope you know, Reg, that doesn’t make me feel better. You haven’t joined our cause because you believe in it. You’ve joined because you dislike us least.”</p><p>“I haven’t joined your cause.”</p><p>“I really hope you aren’t trying to make me feel better.”</p><p>“I am sorry, but I… I just feel lost. I’m not sure where I fit in, what my destiny is. I feel like I need to stick to my beliefs and my principles, but I’m starting to lose faith in those ideals.”</p><p>“Well, I’m not going to tell you my life is the way to be, but it is pretty fantastic. Even with all of the death and loss we have sustained, in fact in spite of all of it, I come home to someone who loves me, who will hold me when I cry about something stupid, someone who will stand up for me and fight to the death for me. I really don’t think I could recommend anything better.” Sirius smiles and nudges his brother’s arm to get him to smile. </p><p>Regulus does look discouraged. Sirius may not have talked to his little brother in almost two years, but he knows when Regulus needs a bit of courage to do what he knows is right. Sirius knows that Regulus has already made up his mind about his loyalties, which is why he’s still here, but Regulus might not even know it yet. Regulus has always liked to feel assured in his choices; he likes to be careful and consider all sides. He may not be done evaluating each side, but in his heart, he knows.</p><p>Regulus just stares at the ground. “Perhaps one day, I will find someone to love, someone who loves me, but now is not that time for me and I know that.”</p><p>“Lunch is ready!” Remus calls from the kitchen door.</p><p>****</p><p>Regulus attends another meeting the next morning. This meeting at the Malfoy Manor is strictly a Death Eater only meeting and his parents are not allowed. Only a few people are there: Bella and Rodolphus, Rabastan, Lucius and Narcissa of course, Severus, Evan, Barty, Igor. There are also a few notables missing. They must be on a mission. </p><p>When Voldemort walks in everyone catches their breath and sits back. He’s very angry. The Order had captured a couple of Death Eaters earlier in the day. He’s yelling about how we must protect our plans better. He believes the Order is onto his plans; to Regulus he sounds like a paranoid narcissist trying to blame everyone for his mistakes. He is a beautiful orator though. There are times even, when Regulus starts to fall for his rhetoric again. As he begins to get lost in his thoughts about destiny again Voldemort calls upon him.</p><p>“Yes, my lord?”</p><p>“I will require the use of a house elf. Yours is very loyal, is he not?”</p><p>“He is, my lord. He will do anything you ask of him.”</p><p>“Very good.” Voldemort smiles. “Bring him to me immediately after the meeting.”</p><p>Regulus just nods. </p><p>Voldemort scolds a few more people for making minute mistakes here and there. The meeting is short but interesting. Regulus is starting to feel further away from the pure blood society. After the meeting he goes home to retrieve Kreacher and tell him that he is needed. But before they leave, he pulls out the pendant from his trousers.</p><p>****</p><p>Regulus floos back to Sirius’ flat a few hours later when Sirius is at work. As he comes through the fireplace, Remus is setting two cups of tea at the table. “Early again.” </p><p>Remus has always been smarter than his friends. He can fit in anywhere he tries, which is unfortunate given his condition, but a wonderful trait in a spy. He does make people feel a sense of comfort, but Regulus knows that all of this is a game to him as well, a manipulation that has always, secretly,  impressed Regulus. </p><p>Regulus sits down at the table and takes one of the cups of tea. Regulus enjoys the game, the back and forth, the shifting of power. He would always want it to end with him having all of the power but he’ll play the game as long as Remus wants.</p><p>“Please. Sit.” Remus is already looking annoyed. </p><p>“I will sit where and when I please, especially in my own brother’s home.” </p><p>“This is my home as well.” </p><p>“So then, you pay rent? Do you buy the food that is in the cupboard? This tea?” Remus just glares at him. “Alright then, my brother’s home.” </p><p>“I should tell you; I will tell Sirius that you contacted me, discreetly, and I will tell him that you visited.” </p><p>“You will not tell him the context of our visit.” </p><p>“Precisely.” </p><p>Regulus rolls his eyes. It wasn’t a question, so he poses one. “Why did you lie at the house the other day?” </p><p>“Getting right to the point, I see.” Remus sighs as Regulus waits; Remus starts again, saying, “I am not supposed to know. Sirius does not know that I know, no one does.” </p><p>“Know what?” </p><p>“I have only heard whispers of such things from different packs I have infiltrated, but it is always the same word.” </p><p>“Which word?” </p><p>“Horcrux.” A loud bang stops their conversation and a very near death looking Kreacher staggers up to Regulus, grabbing desperately at his robes. There is blood everywhere. </p><p>“Kreacher!!” </p><p>Regulus scoops the house elf up in his arms.</p><p>“Put him on the couch!! I’ll be right back,” Remus says. </p><p>“No!! Don’t leave!!” Regulus sounds genuinely scared. </p><p>“Two minutes, I swear!” Remus disapparates. </p><p>Regulus is in a panic. He’s looking at Kreacher, who even compared to what he normally looks like, is extremely pale. There is blood running down one of his legs and his eyes are bloodshot. “What happened, Kreacher?!” </p><p>“The Dark Lord. Had Kreacher test the defenses.”</p><p>“What defenses? What did he have you do?” </p><p>“Kreacher climbed the cliff. Kreacher made it past the door.” </p><p>Another pop interrupted Kreacher. Remus is back with Lily, who says, “Move. Let me see him.” </p><p>Regulus steps out of the way. As she steps up to Kreacher to evaluate what is wrong with the house-elf, he starts screaming. “NO! NO! MUDBLOOD!! GET AWAY FROM KREACHER!!” Kreacher is swatting at her trying with all the strength he has left to get her away from him.</p><p>“I’m not going to hurt you. I’m trying to heal you!” </p><p>“KREACHER WOULD RATHER DIE!! KREACHER SHALL NOT BE HEALED BY THE FILTH OF YOU!!” </p><p>“Kreacher, let her help!!” </p><p>Kreacher looks at Regulus in disbelief but obliges. “Yes, master.” </p><p>Lily says a few spells. “Remus, hand me the purple potion.” Remus hands it to her and she helps Kreacher drink it. She says a few more spells Remus recognizes them. They’ve been used on him before, mostly spells to help heal muscle and repair blood flow. After a few minutes, Kreacher starts to come to.</p><p>Regulus is right at his side. “You’re awake. Are you alright?” </p><p>“Yes, Master Regulus, Kreacher is feeling much better.” Kreacher looks toward Lily with disdain. “You had the filthy mudblood touch Kreacher.” </p><p>“Yes, she was trying to help you.” </p><p>“But mudbloods are filthy. They use tainted magic.” </p><p>“Maybe not, you said that you feel better. Maybe mudbloods are good for some things.” </p><p>“Kreacher does not think so,” Kreacher says even though Regulus looks a little disappointed. “You should have let me die, Master Regulus.” </p><p>“I could never let that happen, Kreacher. You… you’re my best friend.” </p><p>He pauses for a moment, maybe trying to decide between his mistress’ ways or Regulus’. “Kreacher is thankful.” </p><p>“I could only hope you would do the same for me.” Kreacher only nods. Regulus smiles. “Now tell us more about the Dark Lord’s mission for you.” </p><p>“He had Kreacher testing the defenses. Kreacher was successful. Kreacher got to the locket.” </p><p>“Locket. What locket?” Remus asks. </p><p>“Do not speak to Kreacher! You are worse than the mudblood, you stink of filth!” </p><p>“Kreacher, behave yourself! These are my friends and I expect you to treat them as such.” </p><p>“Yes, master,” Kreacher says reluctantly. </p><p>“Now answer Remus’ question.” </p><p>“Oh, it was dark, very dark, it was.” Kreacher starts rocking back and forth almost as if he’s in a trance. “Very impressive. The locket. Slytherin’s locket. But dark it was. A horcrux, I believe.” </p><p>Regulus and Remus share a look. Regulus says, “A horcrux?” </p><p>“Yes, master. It embodies a piece of a soul, guards and protects, it does.” </p><p>“So that is how he claims to be immortal? Nothing but a trick.” </p><p>“Not just a trick, my master. One has to do unspeakable things to create such darkness.” </p><p>“Well, we’ll stop him then.” </p><p>“Are we going to skip the SLYTHERIN’S locket part?” Lily exclaims. </p><p>Kreacher rolls his eyes and looks contemplatively at Regulus who shoots an opposing look back before asking, “How do you know it was Slytherin’s locket?” </p><p>“Kreacher has been around for a long time. Kreacher has seen many things, many, many, things.” </p><p>“Were you supposed to report back to the Dark Lord?” </p><p>“Yes, master.” </p><p>“Then report your findings. Tell him if you must that you came to me and I healed you. Do not mention anything else. Do you understand?” </p><p>“Yes, anything for my master.” Kreacher bows to Regulus and disapparates. </p><p>As things start to calm down, after Kreacher leaves, Regulus goes up to Lily and says, “Evans, I’d like to say, I suppose, I am grateful to you.” </p><p>“Thank you, Regulus, and it’s Potter now.” She smiles and puts her hand on his shoulder. </p><p>“Well then, thank you…Pott…Lily.” They smile at each other. </p><p>Remus places his hand on Lily’s shoulder, and she looks up at him, then back at Regulus and gives Remus a concerned look. He nods once and smiles. She smiles in return and gives him a hug. “I love you.” </p><p>“Love you too, Lils,” he says. </p><p>The two exchange a kiss on the cheek. With a pop, she is gone. </p><p>“Haven’t you grown since school?” Remus says to Regulus as they sit back down at the table. </p><p>“Yes. Unfortunately.” Regulus goes to sip his tea. “Tea’s cold.” </p><p>Remus puts his hand over the tea. “There, that should help.” </p><p>Regulus sips again. “Hmm. So, I suppose we were on the right track.” </p><p>“And now we can tell Sirius.” </p><p>“Right, because that is what is so important.” </p><p>“It is to me.” </p><p>Regulus looks a little puzzled. He has never held another witch or wizard in such high regard. He’s had a few different relationships, but most of them were based on sex. He’d never felt like talking to any of those people or even thought about them as the most important thing in his life. Sirius and Remus did seem happy though... “You really do love my brother, don’t you?” </p><p>“Yes.” </p><p>Regulus looks as if he’s having a pensive moment but just nods his head. “Right. I will get all of these defenses from Kreacher and figure out how we can get past them, then we shall obtain the locket and destroy it.” </p><p>“Sounds easy enough. I’ll inform Sirius of our plan.” </p><p>“Goodbye, Remus.” </p><p>“Goodbye, Reg.” Remus puts his hand out and Regulus shakes it and leaves.</p><p>****</p><p>A few days later, the pendant in his pocket starts vibrating and he looks at it. ‘Dinner?’ it says. Dinner with his brother actually sounds nice, but he couldn’t miss a meeting. That would be too suspicious. </p><p>He puts the pendant up to his lips, focuses on Sirius and Remus and thinks, ‘D.E. meet tonight.’ As he kisses it the letters appear on his pendant and then disappear just as quickly.</p><p>Another Death Eater meeting at Lestrange Manor this time. As he walks in with his parents closely behind, he sees Voldemort discussing something with Severus Snape. He walks over to his cousin. “Bella, thank you for having us in your home.” </p><p>“Of course, anything to please the Dark Lord.” </p><p>“But of course,” he responds, genteelly. Rodolphus comes up to his wife’s side and puts an arm around her waist. They both cringe a bit.</p><p>The two men exchange hello’s, but Regulus is distracted when he sees Pettigrew. He excuses himself and heads straight for him.  “I wasn’t expecting to see you tonight.” </p><p>Peter stares at him. “And why is that?” </p><p>“Thought you would have been found out by now.” </p><p>“I am on your side, Regulus. Why don’t you believe that?” </p><p>“Because I know how close you are to my brother and his ‘friends.’ I know how loyal you all are to each other.” </p><p>“Well they’ve all moved on, haven’t they? They don’t need me; they barely ever think to owl me anymore. No, it is not I who betrayed them.” </p><p>“But you still play their friend, confidant, member of their rebellion.” </p><p>“Yes, and they’ll regret it, won’t they?” </p><p>“My, my. You are but a leaf in the wind, I see.” </p><p>“What does that mean?”</p><p>Voldemort calls the meeting just in time. They both walk over to the sitting room they have all been called to. Regulus looks around at the normal Death Eaters that come, looking for any new faces or anyone missing. Seems normal. </p><p>“Our young Regulus Black bravely volunteered the services of his house elf to help in this war.” </p><p>‘What a load of bollocks,’ Regulus thinks.</p><p>“What did the elf tell you of the mission I set upon him?” </p><p>Regulus answered quickly with more prestige than he thought he could muster at this moment. “He came to me in pain and told me something of a trial he had to pass, and that he succeeded. Nothing more.” </p><p>“Is that all?” Voldemort gets closer to Regulus, to where their faces are almost touching.</p><p>“Yes, my lord. I did not want to know more. The mission was not mine to know about.” </p><p>“Very good, young Black. Your elf’s services were quite helpful.” </p><p>Walburga looks to her son and if Regulus had ever seen it before, he’d say she was proud. Proud of what though? Being a mindless Death Eater that only follows the orders of a man who only seems to want death and destruction? Regulus is sure now that Voldemort doesn’t care about making their society better. He just wants power.</p><p>Voldemort continues. “And the other mission I gave you?” </p><p>“I spoke to the one known as Sirius Black.” He shoots a look at Pettigrew. “It may take time to get more out of him. He is suspicious of me, but I know how to manipulate him properly. It will take time, and I may need to prove myself before I get something significant from him, but I do believe he or one of his friends knows something about Dumbledore’s searches.” </p><p>“Wormtail! What do you know of this?” </p><p>“My lord, I know no more than I’ve told you. Sirius and Remus and James, the Order, they have a policy now, they know there is a spy amongst them and we… they do not discuss such missions, even with each other.” </p><p>“Fine. That is fine. We shall find a way to infiltrate them better. We need another to turn. That is your new mission, Wormtail.” Pettigrew nods in acceptance. </p><p>Severus looks warily between Regulus and Pettigrew; Regulus tries to keep his composure, but Severus never trusts anyone. There should be no need to worry. He knows he is more powerful, if a fight ever breaks out between them.</p><p>The meeting ends and Regulus feels as though he’s being suffocated. Suddenly the life he was so used to is feeling like it may drown him soon. He sees the way everyone treats one another, so proper, so fake. No one even likes one another here. He sees the way his mother and father are with each other. They don’t even touch each other, barely facing each other when they speak; he tries to remember a time they were together and looked happy. None come to mind.</p><p>Regulus is finally back at home, where he still feels trapped but he can at least breathe. Orion pats his son’s shoulder and goes upstairs to bed. Walburga grins down at her son and follows her husband to bed. He goes up to his room and reaches under his pillow for the pendant. </p><p>‘Lunch,’ he thinks and presses it to his lips and puts it back in his pocket. He has much to tell his brother and the more meetings Regulus attends the more fed up he feels with the whole movement. He wants to run away but knows that would not be for the best. He would be on the run for the rest of his life and although his parents may not die for each other, he would die for them; running away would put them in danger. No, this needs to end as quickly as possible, and he may just be the right man to do it.</p><p>Then he whispers, “Kreacher.”</p><p>A loud pop and Kreacher is at the foot of his bed. </p><p>“I need you to tell me all of the defenses the Dark Lord used and where this cave is.” Kreacher nods and he then suddenly has parchment, ink and a quill in his hands. “No, I have a special ink for this.” He goes to grab ink from his bottom desk drawer. He says a spell and then his own and Sirius’ and Remus’ names.</p><p>Kreacher starts to tell him about the first defenses he suffered through and then the pendant starts to vibrate. Regulus pulls it out to look. ‘Perfect.’ He smiles. “I apologize Kreacher, continue.”</p><p>****</p><p>The next day Regulus is sitting at breakfast with his mother again. “I’ve set up another meeting for you and Aurora. You two will have lunch at...” </p><p>“I’m busy today, Mother. Much work to be done for the Dark Lord.” He grabs his toast and heads back upstairs. During the night he snuck into the library and grabbed a few books on dark magic and guarding spells so that he can be prepared for whatever changes Voldemort may have made since Kreacher went through the cave. He studies until lunchtime. His mother is off visiting with his cousin Narcissa so he knows he will not be missed and floos over to Sirius and Remus’ flat. </p><p>Sirius and Remus are already waiting at the table. Remus looks annoyed and Sirius has a huge grin on his face. Sirius can be so obvious sometimes. He was obviously trying to get Remus into a compromising position before he flooed into the flat.</p><p>“I didn’t walk in on something again, did I?” </p><p>“If it was up to your brother you would have!” </p><p>“I was trying to teach my baby brother a lesson.” </p><p>“What lesson could that possibly be?” </p><p>“Maybe being early is not always best, or maybe how to successfully satisfy a man?”<br/>
Regulus can see what type of mood his brother is in. “I think I’ve learned both of those lessons on my own, thank you very much. Let’s get started.” </p><p>“What?!” </p><p>“I agree, let’s get started,” Remus says with enthusiasm, completely ignoring Sirius. “What have you brought?”<br/>
Sirius rolls his eyes and sits down. Regulus has come with a few books that he plops on the table, along with many rolls of parchment. </p><p>“This one has the defenses in which Kreacher told me about and the others are changes that I believe the Dark Lord would have made to those defenses. I believe we should be ready for any of these things.” </p><p>“Merlin, Reg. When did you have time to do all of this?” Remus says, going through the parchment.</p><p>“Last night,” Regulus says. Sirius looks quite impressed and Remus just smiles proudly. “Now...” </p><p>“Was Peter at your meeting last night?” </p><p>Regulus stops and glares at Sirius for boldly interrupting him. “Yes, why?”</p><p>Sirius and Remus share a look. Remus answers, “We asked him to come over for dinner last night after you told us there was a meeting and he said he had already had plans to visit his aunt for dinner.” </p><p>“Yes, you best be careful around him. He has a lot of anger built up towards his friends, it seems.” </p><p>“What is that supposed to mean?” Sirius asks.</p><p>“I spoke with him last night; he seems to believe you have all moved on without him and he is not too delighted about it.” </p><p>“Are you telling me Wormtail betrayed us to side with Voldemort because… we don’t spend enough time with him?” </p><p>“This is not important!! We need to get the locket!!” </p><p>“Calm down Reg,” Remus says quietly. </p><p>“NO! You two are over here babbling about someone who is obviously not your friend anymore, so get over it and help me figure out how to get this locket out!”</p><p>“We can’t just get over it, Regulus. He IS our friend. CURRENTLY. This is someone we care about. Someone we trusted. Someone we love. You don’t just get over those things. I’m sorry you’ve never had a real friend in your life, but this is what it’s like to care for people!! If you can’t deal with that then sod off!!” Remus has to place a hand around Sirius’ wrist to get him to settle down and stop talking. </p><p>Regulus looks at the two other men, all emotion suddenly emptying from his face. “Alright. I’ll wait.” </p><p>“Sirius, why don’t you sit down.” Remus then turns to Regulus. “I’m sorry, but we’ve started to notice that when we are alone with Peter, he brings up the other, and it seems he is trying to influence a mistrust between us.” </p><p>“Yes. That is exactly what I would do. If he can get you to mistrust each other then you will trust him. Simple but effective.” </p><p>“He could never!” </p><p>“I bet he could have, if the two of you didn’t already have the knowledge that he was the spy,” Regulus points out. </p><p>“Never!” As Sirius stands up, he hugs Remus, who is still sitting, from behind. “I would trust Remus with my life.” </p><p>“People do strange things in times of war; you would do well to remember that.” Regulus points a finger down on one of pieces of parchment. “Now, let us continue.”</p><p>They go through the defenses and Regulus’ ideas for changes. They are all sitting there for hours. Occasionally, someone will bring up one of the defenses and how easily it might be to take it down, so they scrap it. It’s almost dinner time so Sirius goes to get some curry for the three of them. Regulus looks like he’s about to fall asleep, so Remus offers, “Maybe you should go home. Did you get any sleep last night?”</p><p>“No,” he responds, rubbing his eyes, struggling to stay alert. “We need to get this done.” </p><p>“It will take time, Reg, and if we aren’t at our best, we may miss something.” </p><p>After a pause Regulus decides to change the subject. “How did you know you were in love with my brother?” </p><p>Remus is slightly skeptical at the question. “What is this about, Reg?” </p><p>“It’s just… I’m curious.” Remus doesn’t seem to buy it and just stares at him. Regulus shrugs, saying, “I don’t think I’ll ever feel that way.” </p><p>“Don’t think that.” </p><p>“No, I really don’t. I can’t imagine myself dying for someone else. Sacrificing myself, it seems so pitiful.” When Remus seems to be starting to lose his patience, Regulus adds, “I’m not trying to take anything away from you. I just can’t see myself doing it, that’s all.”<br/>
Remus sighs, he is used to the Black philosophical discussions. “It’s not pitiful. When you love someone, you want the best for them, and if that means dying, you’re willing to do that because of how much you love them. How much you want a better life for them, how much you want them to live the life they deserve. When you meet the right person, everything changes. The way you view the world, other people, but most importantly, the way you view yourself. Don’t worry, you are young still. You have plenty of time.” </p><p>“Mother is trying to wed me off already.” </p><p>“Ohhh.” </p><p>Sirius bursts in at that moment with food. “Ready to eat, fuckers?”</p><p>They eat mostly in silence. Remus is worrying about Regulus, Regulus is worried about the plans, they will probably only have one shot at this, and Sirius is scarfing down his curry like he hasn’t eaten in four days. When Sirius gets up to go to the bathroom, Remus nudges Regulus. “You should tell him.” </p><p>“Why?” </p><p>“He could help.” </p><p>“What is it that he’s going to help with? He’s just going to tell me to run away and where will that leave me? Living with the two of you?” </p><p>“You want to live with us?” Sirius says, surprising both of the other men in the room. </p><p>“Well, you are a lot sneakier as a man than a dog.” </p><p>“I’m sneakier than you either way.” Sirius always thinks he knows best. Regulus decides this is a good time to prove his brother wrong.</p><p>“I sincerely doubt that.” Regulus suddenly disappears and there is a cat where he sat.</p><p>“YOU’RE AN ANIMAGUS?!” Sirius says in shock.<br/>
Regulus jumps up on the table and nudges his forehead against Remus’ knuckles. He starts petting Regulus and bumps his forehead against the furball on the table. </p><p>“Blasphemy!!” Sirius yells, snatching up the cat from the table and holding him close to his chest. “Do not PET my brother, please!”<br/>
Remus just laughs and Regulus turns back into his human self, settling nicely, curled up in his brother’s arms. The moment Sirius feels the change he drops Regulus on the floor. “GIT!”  </p><p>Regulus and Remus just laugh. Regulus can barely remember the last time he felt this way. He feels free to do as he pleases, feels like he doesn’t have to impress anyone.</p><p>“You know I may actually enjoy this, just a little,” Regulus remarks as if it is a new sensation.</p><p>Sirius just stares at his little brother, fond memories flooding his brain of their youth. “Me too.”  </p><p>“You must be tired if you’re willing to admit all of that. Why don’t you go home and get some rest?”   </p><p>****</p><p>When Regulus returns home, he looks around at the home he grew up in. The darkness seems to surround him even when the lights are on. The walls are covered with portraits of dead family members and tapestries from the 18th century. Everything yells power and privilege. Regulus goes up to his room and changes for bed. As he lays down, he thinks of the conversation he had with Remus. He thinks of the way Remus and Sirius are together. Thinking of the kindness Sirius and his friends have shown him since all of this started, such as Remus being very patient with him and his views toward dark creatures and mudbloods. Remus knows how he feels and yet he’s still so kind to him. Lily saving Kreacher, even after he called her filth. How could they be filled with such hope? They are losing this war and they still feel that they have a chance. Maybe a pureblood society isn’t the most important thing. Maybe love is, and hope and kindness. Has he been wrong this whole time? Is there a better way to live? Voldemort wouldn’t let these things survive. He doesn’t understand love and devotion, only power and fear. Regulus drifts off, thinking of a world without war, a world full of hope and love.</p><p>****</p><p>When he wakes up in the morning, he is more determined than ever. He goes straight to the study to work on defensive spells and dark magic defenses. The house is quiet for most of the day. His parents are at St. Mungo’s dealing with something; he doesn’t really care. He’s been so focused that he didn’t even notice Kreacher had come in to give him breakfast, which is now cold. He believes he’s come up with the perfect plan though, exactly what Voldemort would come up with. And then he realizes, all of this would be for naught if they can’t destroy the horcrux; how do you destroy someone’s soul? He calls for Kreacher, but Kreacher doesn’t know. He tries to research it, but he can’t find any information on horcruxes even existing, let alone how to destroy them. He sits back in his chair, leaning it on its two back legs and running his hands through his thick black hair. He starts a list of the Death Eaters, the important and not so important ones, certain spells they use and safe houses they can go to. </p><p>He meets Sirius for lunch at his flat and gives him all the new information. </p><p>Sirius thanks him. “This is amazing, Reg. This is more than the Order could’ve hoped for.” </p><p>“Well we are trying to turn this war around, aren’t we?” </p><p>“I never expected this much. I’ve honestly been thinking you might start to regret this.” </p><p>“No. I think I have realized that our family is mad. Putting pure blood before love, well what does that get you?” </p><p>“Pureblood children?” </p><p>Regulus laughs at his brother. “Yes, but that is all. Nothing else comes with it. Look at our parents. I can hardly remember times when they even seemed happy, in the slightest. They just go through the motions of a superior pureblood family, but no one is even happy about it. But seeing you and Remus, you’re truly happy. I want that.” </p><p>“And you will have it one day, brother.” Sirius gets up and pulls his brother into a strong embrace. “We will win this war, and you will find the love and happiness that you deserve.” </p><p>A tear drops down Regulus’ cheek as he realizes that he has never been happier than this moment, here in his brothers’ arms. And suddenly Remus’ words pop into his mind, ‘You’re willing to do that because of how much you love them. How much you want a better life for them, how much you want them to live the life they deserve.’ All he wants now is for his brother to have the life that he deserves. Regulus pulls away and looks at Sirius. “I love you, brother.”</p><p>Sirius smiles. “I love you, too. I will always love you, even if you have a change of heart. I don’t want you to feel scared...” </p><p>“I’m not scared. In fact, I think I have never felt so brave in my life.”</p><p>****</p><p>After hours of going over their plan, the two brothers believe it is foolproof. They have contingency plans and enough protection spells to possibly go after Voldemort himself. Remus comes home from an Order mission and walks in on the two brothers laughing and joking with each other. “What’s happened? Are you under some kind of charm? Curse?” </p><p>“What are you talking about?” Sirius asks as he goes to greet Remus at the door. </p><p>“You and Reg, laughing and getting along. How long have you been here?” Remus asks Regulus.</p><p>“A few hours, possibly more.” </p><p>“And neither of you is dead?! I’m impressed.” </p><p>“Come, see what we have planned!” Remus walks with Sirius to the dining table and looks over the plan and the spells they’ve come up with. </p><p>“Seems like you’ve thought of everything. How do I come into this plan?” </p><p>“You aren’t involved,” Sirius says in a low tone.</p><p>“Why not?!” </p><p>“Because I don’t want you to be harmed.” </p><p>“And you think that I am going to send you off into Voldemort’s cave of dark spells?!” </p><p>“I have to protect my brother.” </p><p>Remus can’t really argue with that. Sirius has always wanted a relationship with his brother, like the one he has with James. Seeing them here, together, happy, how could he come in between them? He looks at Sirius and then at Regulus.</p><p>“Don’t look at me. We’ve already had this argument. I wanted to go alone.” </p><p>Remus looks back at Sirius and understands. He just nods his head in acceptance. “I don’t know why.” Sirius has already made his rebellious stand. He understands that it can’t be done alone. You need support and people who will care about your well-being. Sirius barks, “This is dangerous and it never hurts to have someone watch your back.” </p><p>“Yes, but this is my mission, Sirius. It is my responsibility to take him down.”</p><p>“Reg, you are being irresponsible!! I know that you are used to doing things on your own but you need to understand that sometimes you need people to help you clean up your own mess.” Sirius is trying to stay calm and keeps shifting his eyes to Remus for a bit of calm.</p><p>“Yes. You would know wouldn’t you.” Regulus has a challenging look on his face that flattens the mood in the room and confuses Sirius, even more when he looks at Remus who hangs his head in shame.</p><p>“What is that supposed mean?” Sirius asks his brother.</p><p>Regulus wants to tell his brother that he used to clean up after so many of his and James’ failed pranks to protect him. “Nothing. Just... just that you have people willing to clean up messes for you. Whether you know about it or not, I do not have that luxury, brother. So I will go into the cave, alone. And if that means dying while retrieving this locket, that will be good enough for me.” </p><p>“Well then, you are wrong again, brother, because I am not going to let you die.” </p><p>“You don’t have to protect me, you know. I’m powerful enough to do that on my own.” </p><p>“Oh, here we go again. ‘I can do it all on my own’ blah blah blah.” </p><p>“Excuse me?” </p><p>“You want to know something you learn when you have friends? You learn that sometimes you cannot do it on your own, and you need to lean on others. Of course, Moony still has trouble with this sentiment as well.” </p><p>Remus glowers at Sirius. “Do not drag me into this argument.”</p><p>“It’s alright, you’re more stubborn than me. Which is hard to do.”</p><p>Remus holds his hand up to his face, so as to block Sirius from his view and looks straight at Regulus. “So when are you planning on starting this mission?” </p><p>Regulus mimics Remus, excluding Sirius from the conversation. “I think Saturday will be best. A lot of Death Eaters will be attacking the safe house I told you about, so if there are any alarms up, most of the more powerful members will be at odds with your Order.” </p><p>“Very good.” When they put their hands down, they see Sirius just sitting there pouting, “Are you two done acting like children?” </p><p>“Says the pot,” Regulus remarks smugly. </p><p>“Mmm good idea, I’ll go put the kettle on. Can I trust you both to be alive when I come back?” Remus jokes and gets up to go make some tea. </p><p>“Sirius, I am going to take him down.” </p><p>“I know. We will. Together.”</p><p>****</p><p>The days come and go, slowly drifting by and yet passing in the blink of an eye. Saturday has arrived and Regulus looks at himself in the mirror before he goes downstairs for breakfast. He looks a lot like his mother, her soft brow and hard jawline, but he, like his brother, has his father’s soft grey eyes. He thinks of his family and Kreacher, of a better life for them. He knows what will happen today. It is this moment that Regulus should feel like running. Fear should be overtaking his soul, the need to drop this plan and continue with the life he lived before he decided to change course; all he feels is peace and clarity. He knows that this is what the Order needs to take down Voldemort. This simple thing will tip the scales, and it will be his name, Regulus Arcturus Black, that everyone will remember. Knowing that his mother and brother will be safe, knowing that he is giving so many people the chance to live without war and suffering and fear, this is what gives him the strength to fix his robes, turn from the mirror and finish what he started.</p><p>****</p><p>After he finishes breakfast, he gives his mother a hug, which surprises her. She pats him on the back. “I love you, Mother, and I thank you for all that you have provided me throughout my life.” </p><p>“Yes. You are welcome.” She seems to have a glint of curiosity in her eye for just a moment but it fades quickly. She has been so distant her whole life that Regulus isn’t sure she knows how to be truly caring. He always wished he had been closer to her, but he still loves her despite her lack of warmth. He contemplates telling her the plan, but knows it would put her in danger to know anything.</p><p>He stares at her for a moment and then leaves. He floos into Sirius and Remus’ flat and sees the two sitting on the couch together drinking tea. </p><p>“Have you eaten, Reg?” Remus asks politely, pouring some tea in an empty cup that was waiting for him at the table.</p><p>“I had a small breakfast. Thank you, Remus.”</p><p>They sit together talking about the paper and joke about what the ministry should do with its new werewolf policies.</p><p>“How can you be joking right now? We may not return after this.”</p><p>Remus and Sirius lose the cheer from their faces and Sirius leans close to his baby brother, placing a hand over his. “We laugh because we have to. If you sulk into the night, you’ll never find the daylight. You must shoot down the night, and grasp onto the day or else, what is it that you’re fighting for?”</p><p>This is the moment Regulus is surest of himself. He knows he is making the right decision. “Right then, brother, are you ready to take a shot at the night?”</p><p>****</p><p>As they say their goodbyes, Sirius is holding onto Remus, and Regulus feels as though he is intruding on a very private moment. They whisper things to each other and Remus gives him a very sensual kiss. “I love you.”</p><p>“I love you too,” Sirius says, kissing him one more time. He backs away, towards Regulus, who is quietly observing the moment. He has definitely grown fond of the relationship he’d developed with his brother and Remus over the past few weeks.</p><p>Regulus surprises them both however, by going up to Remus and hugging him. “Thank you, Remus,” he says as he pulled away. “You have changed me and I will be forever grateful.”</p><p>“It was not me who changed you. You made the change yourself,” Remus declares as he places his hands on Regulus’ shoulders. “You are strong Regulus; stronger than that git of a brother you have.” </p><p>Regulus gives Remus’ words some thought. Strength may be an important quality in life but what he has learned over the past few weeks is that you can be the strongest wizard of all time, but if you have nothing... no one to protect... what is the point?</p><p>Remus smirks and Regulus chuckles. He pulls Remus into another hug and whispers, “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he gets back to you.” </p><p>He pulls back quickly and moves toward Sirius before Remus can respond. The two brothers apparate to the outside of the cave.<br/>
They climb the sharp cliffside to get into the cave and their first objective is set. Kreacher had said there was a door that made you solve a riddle before entering, but there is no riddle, only ancient runes. </p><p>Sirius reads them and says, “It requires payment of blood.” </p><p>Regulus uses his wand and says a quick curse that cuts his hand open. He squeezes the wound so blood starts to gush out and he wipes it on the door. It opens. The boys look at each other and enter together. Regulus starts to rip a piece of his cloak to wrap around his wound, but Sirius says a spell and it heals.</p><p>“My boyfriend’s a werewolf. I know a lot of healing magic,” Sirius says when Regulus looks at him with surprise.</p><p>They continue through the dark, wet cave, tripping over rocks and small trinkets that are scattered throughout the cave floors. There is a tint of green covering the walls that Regulus can see with the light from his wand, however it only lights a few meters in front of him. He can see the lake Kreacher spoke of, dark and still as night. He looks for the boat Kreacher mentioned but does not see one. </p><p>“Do you see a boat?” he asks his brother.</p><p>“No. So the one thing we thought he wouldn’t change, he did. How are we supposed to get across the lake?”</p><p>“That is the question, is it not?” Regulus says, more to himself than to Sirius, as he looks around for something, anything. Accio would be the most obvious move so they know Voldemort would have made defenses for it, so they don’t even try it. He looks closer at the lake and moves his wand nearer. “OH NO.”</p><p>“What?! I don’t like ‘oh no,’ what is ‘oh no’?”</p><p>“Inferi, in the lake. We must be extra careful now.”</p><p>“Kreacher didn’t mention anything about inferi, did he?”</p><p>“No.” Regulus follows the inferi in the lake with his light. Every piece of the lake seems to be covered with them, except one part. There are no inferi in this patch of the lake, and it seems that something is blocking them from residing in the space. A realization takes him over. “Here!! I believe I’ve found the boat.”</p><p>Sirius trots over as quickly as he can. “I don’t see a boat.”</p><p>“Well, you wouldn’t see an invisible boat, would you?” Regulus says, smiling.</p><p>“Ooh brilliant!!” They tap their wands to find the dimensions of the boat and they both get in. When nothing happens, Sirius says, </p><p>“Maybe there is a spell to get it going?”</p><p>The boys try different spells, and nothing works. “I can’t think of any more spells,” Regulus says.</p><p>“Neither can I. Perhaps this is a ruse and there is another way?”</p><p>“Why have an invisible boat at all Sirius, if not to use it to get across the lake?”</p><p>Sirius rolls his eyes and starts to get out of the boat, then once he gets both feet out, the boat starts to take Regulus across.<br/>
Regulus says, “I think it will only take one at a time!!”</p><p>“Yes, Reg!! I figured that part out, thank you!!” As Regulus departs from the boat, they realize that they can’t get the boat to go back to Sirius on the other side. Regulus walks up to the basin that holds the locket. A green potion fills it to the brim. Kreacher had mentioned this part. This is what Kreacher almost died from. He knows what he has to do; he pulls a small goblet from his robes and starts to drink the potion. He can hear Sirius, across the lake, saying summoning spells trying to get the boat to come back to him. </p><p>As he continues to drink the potion, he starts hearing someone sneaking up behind him but when he turns around there is no one. </p><p>The pain starts to radiate throughout his whole body. It feels like death has already come. Despite the pain, he keeps drinking. He sees his mother crawling from the lake as one of the inferi alongside Sirius. They come up to him slowly and he grabs at his wand, creating a ring of fire around himself for protection.</p><p>Sirius is still across the lake and sees the fire around his brother. He yells at him, but it is like Regulus can’t hear anything anymore. He is screaming that he needs water, but he also seems like he can’t move, hopefully not. Sirius tries to scream at his brother, warning him not to drink from the lake. </p><p>Suddenly he hears Regulus scream, “NO!! Kreacher!!” </p><p>Suddenly there was a pop and Kreacher was near him on the island. </p><p>‘Thank Merlin!’ Sirius thought. “Over here, Kreacher!! Come and get me so I can help him!” </p><p>Kreacher apparates to Sirius and brings him onto the island, surrounded by the fire Regulus started. </p><p>“The potion! It makes you see things, awful things. Kreacher saw his master and mistress dying.”</p><p>“It must be the drink of despair! Has he had enough to get the locket?” </p><p>“The potion must be consumed entirely to get to the locket.”</p><p>“I will finish drinking it then.”</p><p>“You cannot. He must finish it. He started it. The blood traitor will need to help master Regulus drink. I will not cause my master more pain.” </p><p>Sirius rolls his eyes and tries to help Regulus consume the rest of the potion. He’s writhing in pain, laying in Sirius’ lap. “No, don’t hurt them!! Please take me!!” He looks up at his brother. “Sirius?” </p><p>“Yes, I’m here. You’re safe, you just need to drink.”</p><p>“Yes, please,” he begs. “I am so thirsty. I need water.”</p><p>“No, Reg. You must finish the potion.”</p><p>“No!! NO. I can’t. Please don’t make me.” He starts rocking back and forth in his brother’s arms. The look of terror on his face made Sirius want to abandon everything. “I was doing what was right. Please don’t hurt them for my actions! They were mine and mine alone!! Punish me!!!”</p><p>Sirius starts to force the potion down his brother’s throat and tears start to fall from his face. “I’m sorry, brother.”</p><p>Regulus is screaming for water and crying in agony. “Sirius?! Sirius?!?!”</p><p>“I’m here, I’m right here, only a small bit more to go. Come on, Reg, you can do this. I’m right here.”</p><p>Regulus looks around with tears gushing down his face, “He’s left me. Everyone has left me. I wish I were worth it. Why don’t you love me? No one could ever love me.”</p><p>“I do love you!! I’m right here Regulus, look at me!! Please!!” Sirius begs his brother to see him through the tears, but Regulus does not.</p><p>Sirius feeds him the last of the potion and holds his brother as he begs for water and love. “Please, Regulus, please hear me now. I love you. I will always be here for you and I will never leave you. Please hear me,” he says, crying. As his tears fall onto Regulus’ lips, he starts to calm slightly.</p><p>“Sirius? Is that really you?” </p><p>“Yes!! You can see me?! Thank merlin!” He embraces his brother with all of the love in his body, in his soul. “I thought I’d lost you.”</p><p>“Did you switch the locket?”</p><p>“No, I’m trying to take care of you.” </p><p>“Help me up.” Sirius obliges his brother and walks him to the basin where the locket sits. They stare at it for a minute, this small locket is worth all of this pain and suffering. It’s almost an impossible thought, and an unbelievable moment. Then Regulus reaches in and grabs it. The power inside knocks him from his brother’s arms and down to his knees. Sirius kneels next to him. Regulus says a spell to copy the locket exactly. He reaches inside his robes and pulls out a letter to slip inside the fake. “Now he’ll know.”</p><p>When Regulus says the spell to copy the locket, however, the charm on the ring of fire falls and the flames dissipate. Sirius throws the fake locket into the basin and it fills again with potion. He tries to put the real locket into his brother’s robes but turns to see an army of inferi heading slowly toward them. As they try to run toward Kreacher, Regulus falls again.</p><p>Before he can reach Regulus, Regulus says, “Kreacher, take my brother home!!”</p><p>“NO!!!!” Sirius runs to grab his brother, reaching his hands out, but Kreacher gets to him first and they disapparate.<br/>
Regulus gathers all the strength he has left to crawl toward the lake. He is desperate for a drink and as he reaches in so that he can cup some of the water in his hands, a hand reaches up and grabs his arm, pulling him under. Kreacher apparates back into the cave and all is calm. Regulus is gone.</p>
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